FAQs

1. Identify the degree or certificate pathway that you want to study at SMCC.
   • Review available degree and certificate pathways on the web: Degrees and Certificates | South Mountain Community College
   • Still unsure about which pathway to pursue? Create an account with Maricopa Pipeline AZ. You can complete a career interest assessment to identify your top three Fields of Interest (FOI), including related careers and education and training options available at the Maricopa County Community Colleges.
2. Be prepared to discuss your career interests and goals.
   • Research your career on the Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH).
   • What are the typical entry level education and training requirements for a career in your desired field?
   • If your career requires a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Doctorate degree, which university do you want to attend?
   • SMCC has designated University Transfer representatives and other partners you can connect with.
3. Complete required pre-enrollment steps.
   • If you want to register for classes after meeting with your Academic Advisor, it is important to complete the required pre-enrollment steps. Review the Pre-Enrollment steps section for more information.
   • First time college students (including all recent high school graduates) receive academic advising and registration support through our Cougar Kickstart Orientation.
   • Transfer students (students transferring from a college or university outside of the Maricopa County Community College District). Enrollment Steps | South Mountain Community College
4. Establish your financial plan.
   • When you enroll in a class, you are accepting financial responsibility for the tuition and fees associated with the class. You will secure your classes by making a plan to pay your tuition by the due date using one or more of the following methods: Ways to Pay | Maricopa Community Colleges
   • Pay for College with Financial Aid. SMCC offers in person and online support to students to help you apply for Federal Financial Aid, for more information, please visit Paying for College and Financial Aid.
5. Think about your outside commitments (work/family obligations) and how that will impact the scheduling of your courses.
   • Each course is assigned a credit value which indicates how many credit hours that class counts towards your degree requirements.
   • Most classes are worth three credit hours.
   • Science classes with labs are worth four credit hours.
   • Part - time enrollment: 11 credit hours or less (2-3 classes)
   • Full-time: 12+ credit hours (4 or more classes)
   • Time - Study Formula: For every 1 hour of in class time per week, dedicate 2 hours of study time

Sign up for Cougar Kickstart Orientation online at southmountaincc.edu/nso. Cougar Kickstart Orientation is an essential part of your college experience and provides a foundation for success. As you begin your college career, you probably have questions. During orientation, you’ll learn about campus resources and departments, learn more about your Field of Interest and degree pathways, review important online tools, meet your Field of Interest academic advisor, build your class schedule and more. Orientation is organized by Field of Interest (FOI). Sessions are two hours (one hour for information, advisement, and tutorials and one hour for schedule building).

Review our How to Register Guide for step-by-step instructions on how to Find, Add, or Drop classes from your Maricopa Student Center. Access your Student Center and other online tools.

Review our How to Register Guide for step-by-step instructions on how to Find, Add, or Drop classes from your Maricopa Student Center. Access your Student Center and other online tools.

Individuals who have successfully completed courses at other U.S. regionally accredited universities and colleges who would like to enroll in a South Mountain Community College class which requires a prerequisite must request an evaluation of these courses.

Unofficial transcripts are ACCEPTABLE for prerequisite verification purposes.

Students will be required to provide official transcripts when applying to a degree or certificate program and/or when applying for graduation from SMCC.

Transcripts must show original class

Transfer credits cannot be used

Please email admissions@southmountaincc.edu from your official student email (google.maricopa.edu) with the following information:

1. The Class (e.g. ENG101)
2. The Five-digit Class Number
3. The Class Start Date
4. A PDF copy of your transcripts
5. Your Maricopa Enterprise ID (MEID)

Please Note: Upon completion of the prerequisite approval you will be enrolled and notified. Typically requests are processed within two to three business days.

When a class is closed, it is up to the instructor to allow more people in. Email the instructor of the course(s) from your Official Maricopa Student Email account for their permission to override their full class. If there is no instructor assigned (i.e., Staff), reach out to the academic department that offers the course.

If the instructor responds with approval, forward the email to admissions@southmountaincc.edu . Include the five-digit class number of the class if it isn’t already in the email. A representative will assist in registering you for the course.

When you send a transcript to SMCC it is processed in two stages.

1. The first stage is documenting it has been received by the Admissions and Records office.
2. The second stage is evaluating and posting the courses to your SMCC academic record, and this can take up to 10-15 business days.

You will receive an email to your Official Maricopa Student Email account when any official transcript has been evaluated and posted. Contact the Admissions and Records Office at 602-243-8123 or email admissions@southmountaincc.edu to ask where your transcript is in the process. Access the Maricopa Community

College Directory

In order for SMCC’s Financial Aid office to review your eligibility for federal financial aid, you need to have an active admissions application on file for SMCC, you need to include SMCC’s Title IV Code: 015001 on your FAFSA application, and you needed to have provided your Social Security Number on your college application.

You also need to declare a financial aid eligible degree or certificate program.

Monitor updates from SMCC’s Financial Aid Office from your Official Maricopa Student email account and the TASKS tile in your Student Center. Review any Financial Aid awards from South Mountain Community College in the Financial Aid tile in your Student Center. Access your Student Center and other online tools.

SMCC offers Financial Aid support in person, online, and over the phone. Email: finaid@southmountaincc.edu or visit Paying for College and Financial Aid

Your enrollment status for the upcoming semester determines how much federal student aid we can award you. Federal regulations stipulate that we can only give you funds for those courses required for your current degree or certificate program.

Course Applicability

Verify your current degree or certificate program under the VIEW CURRENT ADMISSIONS tile in your Student Center.

Review SMCC’s degree and certificate programs at Degrees and Certificates

You can update your plan with your academic advisor, with Admissions, or online.

We recommend that you download and review the Appointment Scheduling - How to Guide before scheduling an Advising appointment.

Review available degree and certificate pathways on the web: Degrees and Certificates | South Mountain Community College

1. Associate in Applied Science (AAS) Degrees (Occupational Pathways)
   • Designed for students who intend to enter the workforce immediately following graduation from their program. 60 + credits (varies)
   • Not designed to meet all of the general education requirements of a bachelor’s degree program.
   • If you want to transfer, meet with your academic advisor to discuss your plan and any additional requirements you may need to prepare for transfer (if that is your goal!)
2. Certificates
   • A Certificate prepares you for entry-level work in your chosen field and requires fewer classes than the associate’s degree or university transfer options.
   • There are several types of certificates available, including career, trade, and academic certificates.
   • Sometimes, credits earned in a certificate program can often be used toward an associate’s degree. For more information, work with your advisor.
   • Some certificates are not financial aid eligible.
3. Associate Degrees with emphasis (Designed for University Transfer)
   • Earned after completing at least 60 credit hours of required courses at a community college.
   • Upon transfer to the university, a student with an associate degree should need only an additional 60 university credit hours to complete a bachelor’s degree (120 credits).
   • The Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC) is the foundation of the degree (35-37 credits).